A Grave mistake in Great Nicobar

A Grave mistake in Great Nicobar

#GS03 #ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES #BIO DIVERSITY

Context:

The union Ministry of Environmental, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has cleared the decks for a mega project at the cost of about 70000 crores at the southern tip of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Points to ponder:

  • The Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation is the project’s proponent, and NITI Aayog is the organization overseeing the project’s trial phase.
  • The “holistic development of Great Nicobar Island” initiative seeks to create a 14.2 mTEU international transshipment harbor at Galathea Bay on the island’s southeastern shore.
  • 4000 people can be accommodated at a foreign airport during busy times. Along with that a 160 sq km residential community and ecotourism will be set up powered by 450 MVA gas and sun-powered power station.

Concerns

  • About 8000 people are living on the large island of Nicobar. The 900 sq. km. island was added to the UNESCO Man and Biosphere program in 2013 after being designated a biosphere reserve in 1989.
  • According to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (Protection of Aboriginal Tribes) Amendment rule, over three-fourths of it is classified as a tribal reserve.
  • When the project is finished, more than 3 lakh people are anticipated to come, which is equivalent to the present population of the full 1,000 km island chain.
  • In a region renowned for its maritime and terrestrial biodiversity, the ecological and environmental costs of this urbanization endeavor seem to have been neglected along with the tectonic instability.